How many hours a week should you spend outside of class on this course? Face-to-face class answer plus extra 80 minutes
You signed up for a hybrid course, so that assumes a high level of competence in navigating online
If you are having trouble navigating Canvas, you need to come to office hours this afternoon
Syllabus Quiz: Get Out of Jail Free supersedes Late Policy reference in Syllabus Quiz
I am adding a “recommended schedule” for Chapter assignments in Canvas.
- Due dates are unchanged
- Chapter 4 Inquizitives this week (recommended)
- Chapters 1 to 5 due September 20 (DEADLINE!)I will be sending reminders to those who are behind schedule from Canvas Gradebook every one to two weeks.
- There is no need to reply to the reminders.
- Nothing to apologize for.
- Thank yous were appreciated but not needed.Questions: During question time (NOW!) or office hours
Information consumers: US! The people receiving and acting on the information
Misinformation: false or misleading information that is unknowingly shared
Disinformation: false or misleading information that is purposely created and distributed
- Out of context: missing surrounding words and circumstances, real meaning may be the opposite
- Unusual definitions: different meaning than normal speech of the *information consumer*
- Lies“There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.”
Attributed to:
- Benjamin Disraeli
- Mark Twain
- Aldous Huxley
- Leonard Henry, Baron Courtney of Penwith
Related: “Liars, damned liars, and experts!”
55percent_defense meme
Tax Dollars Meme
Simple definitions:
- Discretionary: set in every budget
- Nondiscretionary: set far in advance
- Total budget: Discretionary plus Nondiscretionary
This shows only discretionary spending
- Most spending on the little categories is nondiscretionary
- Virtually all defense spending is discretionaryIf we show the total budget, the picture changes drastically
If we show only nondiscretionary, the rocket disappears
“This week on Facebook I ran into a couple of memes about the defense budget that I thought were worth addressing. While the core message that the United States spends too much on the military is sound, these particular memes are so massively misleading that I think it would be irresponsible to let them go unanswered…”
“Our education spending is about average (though somehow we do it so inefficiently that we don’t provide college for free, unlike Germany, France, Finland, Sweden, or Norway)…How about a meme about that?”
Practical issue:
- If you believe in something, is it better to make an honest argument that you can back up with facts or to resort to misinformation, disinformation, distortions, and lies?
- What happens if someone arguing for something gets caught lying? What do the people listening think?
- Which is more effective?Moral Dimension
- Do you personally want to unknowingly spread disinformation? -https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4124631-these-11-senators-voted-against-the-must-pass-defense-spending-bill/
Do This Now
The Extra Credit Quiz Answers are based on actual federal budget data from the US Department of the Treasury from 2021 last fiscal year:
Goals: Understand the problems. Understand the solutions. Argue more effectively for what you want. Don’t spread misinformation and look dishonest.
defense healthcare coronavirus meme
Of the four following categories, which does the federal government spend the most on?
Of the four following categories, which does the federal government spend the most on?
Correct answer C
Honest meme: Healthcare should be twice as big as defense!
defense healthcare coronavirus meme
Of the following categories of spending, which does the federal government spend the most on?
a - interest on the national debt
b - national defense
c - social welfare spending
d - transportation
Of the following categories of spending, which does the federal government spend the most on?
Correct answer: C - social welfare spending
a - interest on the national debt - 9%
b - national defense - 13%
c - social welfare spending - 65% including healthcare, 39% excluding healthcare. Does NOT include veteran's benefits!
d - transportation - 2%
Based on the budget, this isn’t true at least for federal spending.
Not based on private charitable spending as a percent of national income either List of countries by charitable spending
“It just happens,” [Senator Bernie Sanders] said. “We don’t worry about people sleeping out on the street…”
- [source:](https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4124631-these-11-senators-voted-against-the-must-pass-defense-spending-bill/)
election_healthcare_budget_meme
Of the following categories of spending, which does the federal government spend the most on?
a - customs and immigration
b - healthcare
c - national defense
d - veteran's benefits
Of the following categories of spending, which does the federal government spend the most on?
Correct answer: b - HEALTHCARE - $741 billion plus $657 billion for Medicare vs $2 billion for that election
a - customs and immigration - included in "other" less than 4%
b - healthcare - 27% including Medicare, 14% without Medicare
c - national defense - 13%
d - veteran's benefits - 4%
TRUE MEME: We already spend $1,398 billion on healthcare. How much difference would $2 billion more make?
RESPONSE MEME: If free healthcare only cost $6.06 per person, why does it even need to be free? I’ll pay for mine and 100 other people and still save money!
election_healthcare_budget_meme
Biden Cut Social Security Meme
Disclaimer: I have no idea if these are true. It’s just related.
If we combine national defense spending and veteran’s spending to create a category called “defense related spending,” which of the following categories gets the largest share of federal spending?
a - defense related spending
b - Social Security
c - Medicare
If we combine national defense spending and veteran’s spending to create a category called “defense related spending,” which of the following categories gets the largest share of federal spending?
Correct Answer: b - Social Security
a - defense related spending - 17%
b - Social Security - 21%
c - Medicare - 12%
Biden say Trump will cut social security meme
Disclaimer: No idea if this is true either, it’s just funny given the Biden meme!
Which of these gets the largest share of federal spending? Consider these categories:
a. Courts and police of all types
b. Defense related = national defense plus veteran's benefits and services
c. Senior citizens benefits = Social Security and Medicare
d. Welfare for non-seniors
Which of these gets the largest share of federal spending? Consider these categories:
Correct Answer: C - Senior citizens benefits at 33% d. Welfare for non-seniors is close at 32%
a. Courts and police of all types - less than 4$
b. Defense related = national defense plus veteran's benefits and services - 17%
c. Senior citizens benefits = Social Security and Medicare - 33%
d. Welfare for non-seniors - 32%
We will revisit this topic at least once more during the semester and you can expect I will pick on a Republican Senator!
Three minutes starts now!
Sovereignty: Supreme and final governing authority.
Unitary system: the national government is completely sovereign
Confederation: The states or similar lower level governments are completely sovereign
Federalism: Sovereignty is shared between national and state governments
Cougar Basketball
Cougar Football
Soccer ball
This isn’t just to be silly:
Question:
Balls within a ball
National government is supreme and holds all sovereignty
Do they have lower level governments? (States, cities, etc.)
- Yes! But those governments get their power solely from the national government and the national government can abolish the lower units, change their powers, or overrule decisions at any time.Most countries are unitary states
- 166 of 193 United Nations Members Examples:
- People's Republic of China
- Republic of China (Taiwan)
- France
- Finland
- SwedenThe states are completely sovereign
The sovereign units may be called states, republics, kingdoms, principalities, or other names associated with sovereign states
Also called a confederacy or a league
Is there a central or national government?
- Yes! But the national government gets it power solely from the state governments and the state governments can abolish the central government, change its powers, ignore its decisions, or even overrule its decisions at any time.Examples:
- Benelux states (Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg)
- European Union
- Switzerland
- Union State of Russia and Belarus
- United Colonies of New England (1643-1689)
- united States of America (1776-1789)
- Confederate States of America
- Commonwealth of Independent States (1991-??)Also called federal systems or federalist systems
The central or national government is also called the federal government
Sovereignty is shared between the state and national governments
- The powers of state and national governments are defined in a constitution
- The national government may not change the powers of the states
- The state governments may not change the powers of the national government
- Each level's powers are binding on the other in its own proper sphere of influenceThere are 27 federations in the world
Examples:
- Australia
- Canada
- Brazil
- Estados Unidos Mexicanos
- Germany
- Russian Federation
- United Arab Emiratesand The United States of America
Two related reasons:
Federal government got necessary power for:
- Interstate relations - common marketMostly Article I powers given to Congress
Examples:
- uniform laws of bankruptcies
- regulate commerce...among the several states
- post offices and post roads
- standard weights and measures
- coin money and regulate the value of coin (currency)Federal government got necessary power for:
- Interstate relations - common market
- Foreign relations - unified foreign policyArticle I and II
Examples:
- Make treaties
- appoint ambassadors
- Declare war
- punish piracy
- regulate commerce with foreign nations
- raise armies and a navy
- to govern the state militias when in federal serviceFederal government got necessary power for:
- Interstate relations - common market
- Foreign relations - unified foreign policy
- Taxes to fund federal government
- Limited power over federal electionsArticle I
Federal government got necessary power for:
- Interstate relations - common market
- Foreign relations - unified foreign policy
- Taxes to fund federal governmentState governments got: Everything else
- Most crimes
- Business formation
- Property records and enforcement
- contract law
- family law
- Primary power over electionsGOVT2306, Fall 2023, Instructor: Tom Hanna
Social Spending: Is this true?
“It just happens,” [Senator Bernie Sanders] said. “We don’t worry about people sleeping out on the street…”
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4124631-these-11-senators-voted-against-the-must-pass-defense-spending-bill/